Sweden presents first action plan against honour-based violence and oppression

Honour-based violence and oppression builds on honour-based cultural norms and strong patriarchal and heteronormative conceptions. It restricts people’s lives and subjects them to coercion and violence aimed at maintaining family control over the individual. How a person dresses, the friends they meet and their choice of work, education and partner can all be affected. 

Far too many people in Sweden are subjected to honour-based violence and oppression. However, it is difficult to get an overview of the scale of the problem and the number of undocumented cases is estimated to be large. Knowledge of honour-based violence and oppression needs to increase. Using the action plan, the Government is therefore laying the foundations for coherent and long-term action against this kind of violence and oppression. It encompasses all ages, but focuses particularly on the vulnerability of children and young people.  

“Honour-based violence and oppression must stop, and we need to fight it relentlessly. With this action plan, the Government is taking decisive action against honour-based violence and oppression. Culture, custom, religion, tradition or perceptions of honour must never be used to justify violence and oppression,” says Minister for Gender Equality Nina Larsson.  

Significant initiatives in five strategic areas

During the electoral period, the Government has tightened the legislation on honour-based violence and oppression. This has included new legislation criminalising virginity testing, virginity certification and hymenoplasty, tightening penalties for honour-based offences, prohibiting cousin marriage and introducing more extensive travel restrictions for children and young people in certain situations. With the action plan against honour-based violence and oppression, the Government is building further on this and staking out a clear direction for action during the period 2026–2028.

The action plan contains initiatives in five strategic areas: 

• violence prevention
• detection of honour-based violence and oppression
• support and protection for victims
• law enforcement
• prevention of recidivism 

Some of the initiatives in the action plan focus on education and awareness-raising among school, social services and health and care proffesionals, with a view to boosting their ability to assess risks and stop honour-based violence and oppression before it escalates. Another example is the initiative for regional resource centres and helplines for victims of honour-based violence and oppression and those at risk.